Calgary's Aaron Hyman anxious for second crack at Memorial Cup glory

As the Calgary-raised defenceman readies for his second crack at the Mastercard Memorial Cup, he’s shooting for a case of been there, won that.

“It’s a pretty rare opportunity that I have, and that’s why I’ve been working so hard for the past month, because this doesn’t come around too often and I just want to make the most of it,” said Hyman, who helped the Seattle Thunderbirds to a Western Hockey League crown last spring and then was traded in January to the Regina Pats, hosts over the next week-and-a-half of the historic 100th anniversary edition of Canada’s iconic junior-hockey tournament.

“I already have a league championship, but I was short of the Memorial Cup last year and just have some unfinished business. To hoist that trophy up above my head would mean everything. I’ve sacrificed so much, along with my teammates, being away from my family for such a long period of time. My family is in my corner supporting me at all times, and it would mean a lot for me and for them, just to see me on the ice with that cup in my hands and hoisting it with all my teammates.

“That would mean so much to me. That’s what I really want.”

Hyman and the Pats will clash with the Ontario Hockey League champion Hamilton Bulldogs in Friday’s tournament opener at Brandt Centre in Regina.

The Swift Current Broncos — captained by Flames prospect Glenn Gawdin — won the right to represent the WHL at the annual four-team showdown, while the Acadie-Bathurst Titan arrive as the cream of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League.

While the Broncos, Bulldogs and Titan have had only a few days to recuperate after capturing their respective league titles, the Pats have been playing the waiting game for more than six weeks since being eliminated by Gawdin & Co. in a seven-game slugfest in the opening round of the WHL playoffs.

“I’ve never seen this amount of work ethic from any group I’ve been with,” said Hyman, who turned 20 during the lengthy layoff. “We’ve put in the work. We’ve prepared all this time. And when you do the preparation, you’re ready for the exam, so to speak. So we’re really looking forward to it. I can’t wait to get that opening ceremony over with and then right into Game 1.

“Last year, with the Thunderbirds, we were pretty beat up,” he added. “After we beat Regina (in the WHL final), we were pretty tired and just beat up, and that didn’t help our cause. In Game 1, at the start, we just weren’t that sharp. We weren’t executing. So I think the biggest thing is just coming into that first game with lots of confidence.

“Honestly, this tournament is about the team that establishes their confidence the quickest and is able to ride it throughout.”

The 2018 Memorial Cup will be broadcast on Sportsnet, and hockey fans in Calgary will certainly recognize a lot of names.

The Flames signed Gawdin to an entry-level pact in November and the 21-year-old centre was a force during the Broncos’ championship run, racking up 32 points in two-dozen spring skates en route to playoff MVP honours.

Swift Current’s forward cast also includes a hat-trick of guys who started this season with the Hitmen — Andrew Fyten, Matteo Gennaro and Beck Malenstyn.

Hyman’s road to Regina included 77 appearances with the Hitmen before eventually being traded to the Thunderbirds. An imposing presence at 6-foot-5 and 221 lb., he also attended both rookie camp and main camp with the Flames as a free-agent tryout in 2016.

“I was raised cheering for the Flames when I was a kid and to be able to live that dream for two or three weeks, I can’t put it in words really,” recalled Hyman, a stay-at-home sort who has six goals and 33 points in 167 career contests at the WHL level. “It was pretty incredible and I’m very thankful for what they’ve done for me. It’s helped me to get to where I am now, competing for a Memorial Cup.”

Again.

The Thunderbirds lost each of their round-robin matchups last May, failing to advance to the semifinal or final. Hyman was dinged with a combined minus-6 rating in those three defeats.

Thanks to a deadline-day trade to the Pats, he now has another opportunity to get his hands on the historic hardware.

“Obviously, last year wasn’t really the outing I wanted,” Hyman said. “I get a bit of redemption, you could say, to be in the Memorial Cup again. I’m just ecstatic. I can’t wait for it to start.”

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